Window-screen.



F. AHLSTROIVI.

wmnow SCREEN. APPLICATION FILED JULY l. 1915.

1,1965%. Patented 29,1916.

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F. AHLSTROM.

WINDOW SCREEN.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 1, 1915.

00 .l 9 1 0a 2 g H A d 6 t n 6 t a P 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- ilni'lllldili 1 I Ilfdwld If!!! iii m Halli A L FREDERICK AI'ILS'IROM, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO ALBERT J. ISHERWOOID, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

WINDOW-SCREEN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 1, 1915. Serial No. 37,488.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK AHLsTRoM, a subject of the King of Sweden, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Window-Screens, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to the construction and arrangement ,of a screen adapted to be employed for the usual purpose in connection with a window structure, and it is particularly adapted for use in connection with the windows of railway cars and similar traveling conveyances.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a frame for a screen which is cheap and simple of manufacture and which will permitof the ready insertion and removal of the screen therefrom.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for locking the screen surface in place within the window frame so that at the same time the locking operation is performed the screen surface is stretched into a taut condition which is essential in the assembling of a practical screen structure.

A further object of the invention is to provide removable locking members by the manipulation of which the screen surface and frame can be positivelylocked together and by the removal of which the screen surface can be easily and quickly disassembled from the frame.

A further object of the invention lies in the production of a particular and peculiar form of blank for producing corner rein for-cements for the frame structure.

A further object of the invention resides in making the rails composing the frame of a hollow nature whereby the lowermost of said rails is capable of receiving a concealed catch by means of which the screen can be positively locked in a raised or lowered position.

The invention further consists in the features of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a view showing the screen of the present invention in operative position within a window structure and showing the screen in lowered position in full line and in raised position in dotted lines; Fig. 2 is a detail section of one end of the frame structure fihQWll g the screen surfacelocked in position within the frame; Fig. 3 is a detail section of one cornor of the frame structure; Fig. 4 is a section through the frame structure with the screen removed; Fig. 5 isa detail section of the releasing member of thecatch mechanism; Fig. 6 is an elevation of the corner reinforcement; Fig. 7 is a plan viewof said reinforcement; and Fig. 8 is a view of the blank from which said reinforcement is made. I

The device is shown as applied to a window structure comprising a window casing 9, a window 10 and said casing is formed with the usual channels in which the window slides and is provided, as will be seen from Figs. 1 and 2, with .a chamber 11 extending longitudinally thereof. This window casing and Window structure may be of any suitable size and type.

The screen which forms the subject matter of the present invention consists of a frame designated generally by the numeral 12 and. a screen surface designated generally by the numeral 13. The frame 12 is formed of an upper rail 14:, a lower rail 15, and side rails 16 suitably brazed or otherwise joined together. These rails are of similar construction and to expedite the description a detail statement of the construction of only one of these will be gone into.

The rail consists of a single piece of material, preferably sheet metal, bent to form an outer portion 17, a side portion 18, an inner portion19, and a side portion 20. The inner portion 19 is bent to provide an inwardly extending part 21.. The side portion 20 is bent back upon itself at its extremity to provide an inwardly extending part 22 which extends parallel with the part 21 but spaced away from this latter part to provide a channel or passage 23. Into this channel or passage is inserted an angleshaped screen surface retaining and stretching member 24:; one portion 25 0f whidh extends into the channel 23 and the other portion 26 of said member lies to the outside of the frame structure and abuts against said structure at the juncture of the parts 20 and 22 thereof. This portion 26 of this screen surface retaining and stretching member provides a working surface to allow of the ready insertion and removal of the same; that is it provides a surface against which a tool can p t t drive the s r en s urface retaining member into, and remove it from, operativeposition. Each edge of the rectangular screen surface 13 is folded over a wire 27 (see Fig. In assembling the frame the edges of the screen surface are inserted into the channel 23 until the wire 2? assumes substantially the position shown in Fig. 2 then the screen surface retaining and stretching members 26 are inserted within the slots 23 of the respective sections of the frame, and are driven upward into the position shown in Fig. 2. It is obvious that by this operation the screen surface is clamped and held in place between the face of the member 24 and the face of the section 21 of the frame, and the driving of the members 24 will always be in a direction away from the center of the screen surface and will thus tend to pull said screen surface toward the frame. Thus a stretching of the screen surface in four directions outwardly from the center thereof will. be brought about, placing the screen surface in a firm, taut and desirable condition.

At intervals within the chamber 28 of the screen frame I insert a block or backing piece 29 having in the construction shown a threaded recess 30 to receive a locking member 31 which, as shown, is in the form of a screw. This screw extends through the portions 20 and 22 of the frame through the member 24, the portion 21 of the frame, the screen surface and into the block 29 and thus provides a positive lock for holding the parts together. It will be noted that this block extends only along the inner portions of the chamber 28 of the screen structure leaving the outer portion of this chamber in the form of a free passage. This is material in connection with the insertion of the catch mechanism for the screen, as will hereinafter appear.

It is deemed desirable to reinforce the corners of the screen frameby a supplemental or reinforcing piece, but it is also desirable that this piece be of such a nature as not to interfere with the ready insertion and removal of the screen surface or the retaining members 24 thereof. This reinforcing piece consists of a blank 32 (see Fig. 8) formed to provide four wings 33, 34, 35 and 36. This blank is bent along the dotted lines shown in Fig. 8 to produce an angled side piece 37 formed by the wing 36, an angle side piece 38 formed by the wing 34, a bottom portion 39 formed by the wing 35 and an end portion 40 formed by the wing 33. When thus bent, there is constituted a right angled box-like structure with one of the side faces narrower than theother (see Fig. 6), and this structure when inserted in the corner of a frame has the narrower of these side pieces extending below the member 24, as will be seen'in Fig. 2, and the wider of the side pieces extending from the bottom wall 17 of the frame structure to the top wall 19 (see Fig. 2) while the portion 40 of the corner piece lies along the portion 17 of one rail and the portion 39 extends along the portion 17 of the rail of the frame extending at right angles to the first mentioned rail; that is the portion 40 of the corner piece extends along the inside of the outer face of one rail of the frame, the portion 39 extends along the inside of the outer face of the rail abutting against or adjoining the first mentioned rail. By this arrangement of corner piece no impedance is offered to the insertion and removal of the screen or the retaining member 24 therefor but the walls of the frame of the screen structure are reinforced by the corner pieces which is the object desired.

It is desirable to provide a catch for the screen as a whole to positively lock it in raised or lowered position. It is also desirable, for appearances sake, that this catch should be concealed and also by concealing the same an elimination of any extending surfaces which might interfere with the ready opening and closing of the window is effected, therefore, the hollow chamber 28 which extends from end to end of the rails of the screen is provided to receive the operating mechanism for this catch.

The catch in the construction shown con sists of spring fingers 41 located at opposite sides of the screen structure and joined thereto. Each spring finger is bent to provide an acting surface 42. To each finger 41 is attached a cable or other suitable operating device 43 which passes over a member 44 and is attached to a catch releasing member 44*. This catch releasing member 44, in the construction shown, consists of a stem having a head 45 on one end and an eye 46 on the opposite end, and the eye is enabled to pass through a slot 47 in the outer face of the lower rail of the screen frame so that the presence of this releasing member does not interfere with the screen being pulled down firmly on the casing of the window. A finger piece 47 is provided for enabling a raising and lowering of the screen and when the screen is raised to elevated position the acting portions 42 of the fingers 41 may enter into a notch or other suitable retaining member 48 in the window casing and thus the screen will be positively held in its raised position. When it is desired to lower the screen a suitable tool is inserted in the eye 46 and the stem pulled down, drawing the cables 43 inward and pulling the acting ends of the spring fingers out from the notches or other retaining members, thus allowing the lowering of the screen in a simple and ready manner. A suitable spring 49 may be employed if desired for holding the latch releasing mechanism in normal upward position.

It is understood that the foregoing description of latch mechanism and latch releasing mechanism is not claimed specifically as a portion of the present invention, but merely describes one form of such mechanism capable of employment with a screen frame having a hollow lower rail with a chamber therein of an uninterrupted nature, allowing the interposition of this catch mechanism therein, thus concealing the same and eliminating all outwardly extending parts from the screen structure which, as stated, might interfere with the raising and lowering of the window which lies immediately adjacent the screen.

I claim:

1. A window screen comprising a hollow frame formed of connecting rails, each having a channel along the inner edge thereof, a screening provided with thickened edges adapted to be inserted within the hollow portion of the frame, a screening retaining member adapted to be inserted within the channel for holding the screening in place, the thickened edges of the screen being arranged to lie adjacent the edge of the retaining member situated farthest within the channel, whereby the retaining member during insertion thereof forces the screening into stretched position, substantially as described.

2. A window screen comprising a hollow frame formed of connecting rails, each having a channel along the inner edge thereof, a screening provided with thickened edges adapted to be inserted within the hollow portion of the frame, a screening retaining member adapted to be inserted within the channel for holding the screening in place, the thickened edges of the screen being arranged to lie adjacent the edge of the retaining member situated farthest within the channel, whereby the retaining member during insertion thereof forces the screening into stretched position, and removable locking means for holding the screening retaining members and screening in position within the rails, substantially as described.

3. A window screen comprising a hollow frame formed of connecting rails, each consisting of a single piece of metal bent to provide a chambered construction with a channel along the inner edge thereof, a screening provided with thickened edges arranged to be placed within the channel, a screening retaining member adapted to be placed within the channel for holding the screening in place therein, the thickened edges of the screen being arranged to lie adjacent the edge of the retaining member situated farthest within the channel, whereby the retaining member during insertion thereof forces the screening into stretched position, substantially as described.

at. A window screen comprising a hollow screen being arranged to lie adjacent the edge of the retaining member situated farthest within the channel, whereby the retaining member during insertion thereof forces the screening into stretched position, and removable locking means for holding the screening retaining member and screening in operative position, substantially as described.

5. A window screen comprising a hollow frame formed of connecting rails, each consisting of a single piece of metal, bent to provide a chambered construction with the free ends of each rail extending into the chambered portion of the structure and providing a channel, a screening provided with thickened edges adapted to be inserted within the channel, a screening retaining member adapted to be inserted within the channel for holding the screening in place therein, the thickened edges of the screen being arranged to lie adjacent the edge of the retaining member situated farthest within the channel, whereby the retaining member during the insertion thereof forces the screening into stretched position, substantially as described.

6. A window screen comprising a hollow frame composed of connecting rails, each rail being of chambered formation with a channel along the inner edge thereof, a screening provided with thickened edges arranged to be inserted within the channels of the rails, and an angled L-shaped retaining member for each rail, comprising an elongated piece having its narrower portion adapted to extend within the channel to lock the screen therein, and its head portion arranged to lie outside of the channel to form a working surface for the application of a removing tool, substantially as described.

7 A window screen comprising a hollow frame formed of connecting rails generally U-shaped in cross-section with one frame side of greater width than the other, the wider frame side being turned to partially close the inside edges of the frame and being thence bent backward at an acute angle to form short oblique surfaces, and being bent again to provide a wall intermediate and substantially parallel to the frame sides, whereby a continuous opening into the interior of the frame is afforded around the acute bend and between the rail and the narrower of the rail sides, screening adapted to be stretched across the frame with the ltd side of greater Width than the other, the

wider frame side being turned to partially close the inside edges of the frame and being bent thence backward at an acute angle to form short oblique surfaces, and being bent again to provide a wall intermediate and substantially parallel to the frame sides, whereby a continuous opening into the interior of the frame is afiorded around the acute bend and between the wall and the narrower of the rail sides, screening adapted to be stretched across the frame with the edges of the screen inserted through the openings on the inner sides of the frame, the edges of the screening being formed to provide relatively thickened portions, a block of L-shaped cross-section inserted within the opening of each rail with the head portion of the block abutting against the edge of the narrower rail side to thereby serve as a stop member, each block being arranged to wedge the screen against the intermediate wall with the thickened portion of the screen edge lying within the frame and beyond the wall, substantially as described.

FREDERICK AHLSTROM.

WM. P. BOND.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

